My parents want me to drop out of college

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I started a class at the community college Monday, 10-19-15. Since then, I have had severe anxiety, panic attacks, and I have been self-mutilating. My parents think it may just be that I'm not ready for college. However, I feel I just need one of my meds increased. What is your opinion? Do you think I should drop out and do what my parents said which is "to wait until next semester"? The reason my mom wants me to decide quickly is the sooner I make the decision the more likely we are to get a refund. Please comment on your opinion and if you have any questions please ask before voting in the poll.

It's nice that your parents aren't putting unearthly pressure on you like many do to succeed, mine don't really I guess but I perceive it that way. That fact that I feel trapped makes the stress even worse.

Isn't it midway thru the semester? It would suck to drop out now, hopefully you can try some new meds before making a decision.

It has been a very hard time for me in college too, I am getting good grades but the anxiety and stress is so severe

It's a program where you start late

Even if you just need your meds adjusted, that won't help in the flick of switch. I don't think it's worth it to further risk your mental and physical health. If your parents think you should drop the class, then maybe it's a good idea. It has been less than a week since the class has started and the stress will only get worse as the semester goes on.

Maybe you can just try other assuming responsibilities (volunteering or something) besides college in the meantime that will still help you prepare for it?

If you were already starting late then waiting until next semester wouldn't be that big of a deal, I guess it depends on if think you can do it. Your mental health is important, we shouldn't have to kill ourselves to prove our worth to society. It's been never ending anxiety and panic attacks since school started for me too, maybe that's normal I dunno but self mutilation isn't. Spring semester here starts in like January so it's not a terribly long wait, if you can still get your money back and it's too much then pull the plug. You're still really young, a lot of people that age just flame out of college all together so if you think a couple months will help get you back on track then do it. Good luck, hopefully things get better for both of us..

I would drop out for the semester indeed, and check with your doctor about your meds in peace.

Even if this is a matter of meds rather than being 'ready' for college, you don't want to change your meds while being stressed in a college class, such things should be done in a stable situation.

For the self-mutilating, you need to switch the behavior to something else. Make yourself do something that you don't want to do, that's hard. Running is the best. It sucks to do and it has a natural anti-depressant effect afterward. Do a walk/run/walk routine until you can gradually run longer. It should grind the bad feelings right out of you. Another thing you could do is turn the shower on cold and make yourself stand there for 60 seconds. The physical shock is what you're looking for. So just switch over to something that isn't harmful and don't leave permanent marks.

For the anxiety, you need something to focus down on and soothe you, to take you out of the situation. I suggest taking a novel with you to class or wherever you're having the problems. Right up until the last second before class, read the novel. Make it something really good and interesting. I'm into medieval fiction like Game of Thrones. You need something on that level, but whatever is your thing.

With the panic attacks, honestly you may need to take some Xanax or Ativan for awhile when you have them. Over time they should decrease in frequency. If not, you have too much stress in your life and will need to adjust something. You're under 21, right? You could drink a beer if you're old enough. I hate to say to do that, but it helps.

If you drop out now, it'll be harder to do it later. You can do this.

How so?

It's like if you've climbed up a hill part of the way. You look up at the top and you're like, oh man, that's too high I can't get there. I'll go back to the bottom and try again when I've rested. You go back to the bottom and then look up to the top again. It's much, much higher this time, because you're at the beginning. You're less likely to start again because the end point is too far away.

It had only been THREE days when she made the initial post. She's already at the beginning.

Anyways, OP, I'd be curious for an update.

Try to disconnect from the idea that you need to succeed in college. Just do the work with the mentality that you're going to try your best but don't put so much pressure on yourself to succeed.

Think about it this way:
If you fail at college, yoire in the same position as if you had never tried at all. Actually, you'll probably be in a better position because you've likely learned a bit even if you've failed. So the experience, when framed in this way, is a win-win.

I put "I don't know." It really depends on how you respond to the changed medication. But please....decide before the final date before your parents receive a refund. College is very expensive these days. Your parents will appreciate you for thinking about their needs, as well as your own. They will respect you more as a person.

What would you do should you drop out? Hopefully, get some job experience, make a few bucks. You're still young. It doesn't have to be, by any means, a permanent dropping out. If it lasts one semester, and I had a son, and he did go back next semester, I wouldn't mind it at all.

My nephew FAILED the entire semester because he was too much into partying. However, the next year, he went back to community college, then a four-year college, and graduated last May.

As soon as I saw "self-mutilating" I stopped and voted YES. I was self-mutilating all throughout my post-secondary career.

Get a refund NOW! I'm saying this out of pure love and compassion, and from direct experience. School was a horrible place for me. I hated it, even with all the accommodations, the sheer volume of information you have to read and regurgitate is mind boggling.

Drop out, please. Go on your school's "blackboard" or "srs" or whatever their online registration is, and drop out.

Heal. Recover. Don't worry about school if you're in that state. It's hard enough for a mentally stable person to handle all that BS.